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Review Summary

In this existential drama from Brazil, a nameless man from a wealthy family (Jorge Perugorria) drifts through life without a job or a clear idea of what to do with his life. His sister (Bianca Byington) feels that he's turned his back on everything his family stands for, but at the same time his best friend, a radical leftist, chides him for not giving up the estate left to him by his parents -- which is currently overrun by squatters, who may soon be kicked out by a gang of violent bikers. The man is somehow convinced that he's being stalked by someone who wants to kill him, and as he wanders from one party to another in a daze of paranoia, he fends off the advances of his sister's drug-addicted friend (Susana Ribeiro) and seeks shelter from his ex-wife (Leonor Arocha), who is not entirely happy to see him. Written and directed by Ruy Guerra, a veteran of Brazil's Cinema Nova movement, Estorvo was screened in competition at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi